System and method for monitoring fluid flow in a wellbore using acoustic telemetry

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9863222-B2
Application number	US-201514876935-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 7, 2015
Priority date	Jan 19, 2015
Publication date	Jan 9, 2018
Grant date	Jan 9, 2018

Abstract

An electro-acoustic system for downhole telemetry is provided herein. The system employs a series of communications nodes spaced along a string of production tubing within a wellbore. The nodes allow for wireless communication between transceivers residing within the communications nodes and a receiver at the surface. More specifically, the transceivers provide for node-to-node communication up a wellbore at high data transmission rates for data indicative of fluid flow within the production tubing adjacent gas lift valves. A method of monitoring the flow of fluid gas lift valves is also provided herein. The method uses a plurality of data transmission nodes situated along the production tubing which send signals to a receiver at the surface. The signals are then analyzed to determine gas lift valve operation and fluid flow data.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electro-acoustic telemetry system for monitoring fluid flow in a wellbore, the wellbore penetrating into a subsurface formation, and the telemetry system comprising:
a production tubing disposed in the wellbore, the production tubing being comprised of threadedly-connected pipe joints;
one or more gas lift valves placed along the production tubing;
at least one sensor disposed along the production tubing adjacent each of the one or more gas lift valves, each sensor designed to measure a parameter indicative of fluid flow within the production tubing adjacent the one or more gas lift valves;
one or more sensor communications nodes associated with and in electrical communication with one of the at least one sensors and configured to receive signals from the associated sensor indicative of fluid flow;
a topside communications node placed along the wellbore proximate a surface;
a plurality of intermediate communications nodes spaced along the wellbore and attached to a pipe string, the intermediate communications nodes including a transceiver in acoustic contact with the production tubing and configured to transmit acoustic waves from node-to-node along the wellbore using the production tubing as a transmission medium for the acoustic waves from the one or more sensor communications nodes to the topside communications node; and
wherein each of the intermediate communications nodes comprises:
a sealed housing;
an electro-acoustic transducer and associated transceiver residing within the housing, with the transceiver being designed to relay signals from node-to-node up the wellbore, with each signal representing a packet of information that comprises an acoustic waveform representing fluid flow data; and
an independent power source residing within the housing providing power to the transceiver.

2. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 1 , wherein the surface is an earth surface, or a production platform offshore.

3. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 2 , wherein:
the one or more sensors for measuring a parameter indicative of fluid flow are any of:
(i) fluid velocity measurement devices residing inside of the production tubing;
(ii) temperature sensors that measure temperature of fluids flowing inside of the production tubing;
(iii) pressure sensors that measure pressure inside of the production tubing, or pressure drop across a gas lift valve;
(iv) fluid density sensors that measure the density of fluids inside of the production tubing;
(v) microphones that provide passive acoustic monitoring to listen for the sound of gas entry into the production tubing or the opening and closing of the gas lift valve;
(vi) ultrasound sensors that correlate changes in gas transmission with gas flows, bubbles, solids and other properties of flow along gas inlets;
(vii) Doppler shift sensors;
(viii) chemical sensors;
(ix) an imaging device; and
(x) combinations thereof; and

each of the one or more sensor communications nodes is configured to receive signals from the associated sensor, and relay acoustic signals indicative of readings taken by the sensors.

4. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 3 , wherein:
the one or more gas lift valves comprises at least two gas lift valves;
the packet of information in each signal relayed by the transceivers further comprises an identifier for the sensor communications node that originally transmitted the signal; and
the system further comprises a receiver at the surface configured to receive signals from the topside communications node.

5. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , wherein:
the wellbore comprises a production packer sealing an annulus between the production tubing and a surrounding string of casing;
each of the at least two gas lift valves resides above the production packer; and
the pipe string is the string of production tubing.

6. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 5 , wherein the intermediate communications nodes are spaced apart such that each intermediate communications node resides on its own joint of production tubing.

7. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , wherein:
the intermediate communications nodes are spaced at about 10 to 1,000 foot (3.0 to 304.8 meter) intervals; and
the transceivers transmit data in acoustic form at a rate exceeding about 50 bps.

8. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , wherein each of the transceivers is designed to receive acoustic waves at a first frequency, and then transmit the acoustic waves at a second different frequency up the wellbore to a next communications node.

9. The electro-acoustic system of claim 4 , wherein a frequency band for the acoustic wave transmission by the transceivers is about 25 KHz wide.

10. The electro-acoustic system of claim 4 , wherein a frequency band for the acoustic wave transmission by the transceivers operates from about 100 kHz to 125 kHz.

11. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , wherein the acoustic waves provide data that is modulated by (i) a multiple frequency shift keying method, (ii) a frequency shift keying method, (iii) a multi-frequency signaling method, (iv) a phase shift keying method, (v) a pulse position modulation method, or (vi) an on-off keying method.

12. The electro-acoustic system of claim 4 , wherein:
each of the one or more sensors resides within the housing of its associated sensor communications node; and
an electro-acoustic transducer within the associated sensor communications node converts signals from the sensor into acoustic signals for the associated transceiver.

13. The electro-acoustic system of claim 4 , wherein:
each of the one or more sensors resides adjacent but external to the housing of an associated sensor communications node; and
the electro-acoustic transducer within the associated sensor communications node converts signals from the sensor into acoustic signals for the associated transceiver.

14. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 1 , wherein:
a well head is placed above the wellbore; and
the topside communications node is placed (i) on an outer surface of the well head, or (ii) on the outer surface of an uppermost joint of the production tubing.

15. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 1 , wherein the intermediate communications nodes are attached to an outer wall of the production tubing by (i) an adhesive material, (ii) by welding, or (iii) by one or more mechanical fasteners.

16. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 1 , wherein:
each of the intermediate communications nodes is attached to the production tubing by one or more clamps; and
each of the one or more clamps comprises:
a first arcuate section;
a second arcuate section;
a hinge for pivotally connecting the first and second arcuate sections; and
a fastening mechanism for securing the first and second arcuate sections around an outer surface of a joint of the production tubing.

17. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , wherein each of the sensor communications nodes also comprises an electro-acoustic transducer and associated transceiver residing within a housing, with the transceiver being designed to relay signals from node-to-node up the wellbore representing the fluid flow data.

18. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , wherein at least one intermediate communications node resides between adjacent sensor communications nodes.

19. The electro-acoustic telemetry system of claim 4 , where

Assignees

• Morrow Timothy I
• Romer Michael C
• Disko Mark M
• Exxonmobil Upstream Res Co

Inventors

• Morrow Timothy I
• Romer Michael C
• Disko Mark M

Classifications

• E21B47/10

  Locating fluid leaks, intrusions or movements · CPC title

• E21B43/122 Primary

  Gas lift · CPC title

• E21B47/14

  using acoustic waves · CPC title

• E21B47/113 Primary

  using electrical indications; using light radiations · CPC title